How to Prepare Your Social Media Strategy for the Holidays

Election years aren’t as strong as other years for retailers, so there’s an extra challenge to develop a social media strategy that will attract customers. Regardless of who wins the election, new blood in the White House is bound to make some people uneasy, so retailers need to pull out all the stops to attract customers and get them to show their support where it really counts — with their dollars. This is especially true for small businesses who need to exercise a little extra creative savvy to reel in customers. Here are some ideas that small businesses can utilize during the season to incite their inner social butterfly and end their sales season on a strong note.

Keep Up With — and Create — Hashtag Trends

Being aware of trending hashtags and combining them with their own related hashtags can help businesses increase their social media following. These should be woven into print, television and radio advertising as early in the season as possible. Be creative, be memorable, and be consistent to get shoppers to remember you on shopping day.

Make Them Feel Special

While there is something to be said for thinking through a purchase, sometimes it’s best to strike while the iron is hot. Social media is a great place to introduce your brand by offering limited-time special offers that are hard to resist. When customers know these offers are social media-specific, they are more likely to follow and share posts with their friends.

Reward Loyalty

Make sharing worthwhile to your loyal customers by offering incentives such as an extra discount or free shipping, or create a points-based loyalty system. Encourage customers to share pictures using your holiday-themed hashtags.

Work the Small Business Angle

To many customers, there’s a certain pride that comes from breaking away from the big box stores, if only temporarily. Big shopping days such as Small Business Saturday bring an ideal opportunity to add extra tweaks to your social media strategy that will bring out these types of customers and, hopefully, earn their trust and loyalty well beyond the holiday season.